The Minnesota Vikings will go with Joe Webb as their starting quarterback for Saturday night’s wild-card playoff game against the Green Bay Packers.

Webb gets the call after Christian Ponder was declared inactive with an elbow injury (bursitis). Ponder warmed up at Lambeau Field, but the Vikings deemed he couldn’t go 90 minutes before kickoff. He had been limited in practice all week.

Webb didn’t attempt a pass in 2012. Although he has shown flashes in the past as a No. 2, they have come more from his athleticism as a runner rather than his passing ability. The Vikings’ game plan was to feed running back Adrian Peterson as often as possible with Ponder, and that shouldn’t change with Webb in the lineup.

Webb, 26, played in 11 games in 2011 and has made three starts in his three-year career. In his career, he's 88-of-152 for 853 yards, with three touchdown passes, five interceptions and a passer rating of 66.6. He has also rushed for 273 yards.

Ponder had a strong three-touchdown game against the Packers in the Vikings’ Week 17 victory in Minnesota. Given Webb’s lack of live action this season, expect Green Bay’s 3-4 defense to go after him aggressively. But when it does, the Packers’ edge pass rushers need to worry about containing Webb as he’s a bigger threat than Ponder to rush for chunks of yardage when plays break down.

In 2010, Webb took over for former Packers great Brett Favre as the Vikings’ starting quarterback. Now he’s charged with trying to outduel current Packers great Aaron Rodgers—red-hot over the past month—on the road.

With Ponder out and Webb promoted, McLeod Bethel-Thompson, a second-year undrafted player out of Sacramento State, will serve as the backup quarterback.